there is no soft love in the warble, this time. only quiet urgency and a firm belief. ‘half of me.’ he looks from broken bones and mangled wings to a face stricken with just as much pain. ‘you can heal? you can fix?’ there is no response of course, not the immediate, unwavering one he seeks, and he turns away. approaches the poor person crying PAIN-PAIN-PLEASE-RELIEF-GIVE. ‘...i will take this hurt from you.’
warning: animal abuse / pain / death.
he tries.
gods, he tries.
but there’s nothing to be done. the poor thing’s almost gnawed her entire foreleg off where the iron teeth sink past the scales into the flesh of her thigh. he thinks about – prosthetics, like his and toothless’ – sees the back leg, too, and knows it’s a squall dream. he thinks about – rods in the wings, set in there like fake bones, but they aren’t really wings anymore, are they? they’re crumpled pieces of fabric. there’s no tension to them – they’re torn leather, flapping to the whim of the breeze.
he swallows again.
and again.
all that might have been salvageable. all that might have been saved. she might not fly again, but she’d have a happy – an alive home on berk – but the cloyingly sweet stench in the air and the white, paste-like pus that seeps from her wounds and the way her breaths come in quiet shallow pants and there’s a feverlike haze to her eyes that he doesn’t like, and he knows from the glaze that her second eyelid is milky yellow, not white, against her eyes which is not how any dragon should look but either way she’s been here a long while –
and he’s stalling, he knows – any viking would have done this by now ! and every moment that he hesitates is another keening cry from her, another moment suspended in a pain that he can’t even believe, an agony that wasn’t his fault to begin with but now is because of how long they’ve stood here – how long his mind’s been scrambling for ways to fix this – to heal this – but he can’t – he doesn’t know how – there isn’t any way – – –
the knife slips from his fingers. lands with a thud on the cold soft dirt.
(as if he could have done it with that.)
he takes a step back.
his hands float, shaking, and tangle into knots in his hair. for a brief second he looks towards his dragon. toothless, he whispers, except it’s not something he whispers and more something he breathes out, half there and half not because his voice can’t, won’t do anything, and his eyes are wide and his face pale and his body can’t, won’t do anything, and even after all this time he still can’t kill a dragon – – –
toothless can. he turns with a warble and takes a step forward. a bright, piercing sound fills the air. charges.
the dragon – sensing her time – breathes out something – a sigh – and knocks her head against the rock it rests over – and it reminds him so much of that day in the forest that something in him splits clean in two and his chest collapses, the air whooshed out – but he doesn’t look away. he can’t look away.
it doesn’t take much -- or maybe it takes everything. takes him turning away, and huffing, and snorting, and throwing her off his back for days on end, and throwing herself off his back for just as long, and feeling twelve degrees short of complete hopelessness -- maybe it takes everything, but this is the last straw, the yarn unraveling, the push off the edge.
astrid twists on her heel and raises her chin to the sky and screams a scream to rival a night fury’s own.
when she turns back, her eyes are furious and bright and feral and burning.
“is this a JOKE to you?”
there’s no axe in her hands but that doesn’t mean she’s weaponless; her words spit from her throat, rough and acidic: a changewing in human skin. her fingers flex around an imaginary throat, ball into fists: at the word joke, she slings them to the ground, bolas with no targets in sight.
“is this.” her lungs are heaving. astrid takes a starting, shuffling step forward. the stare she gives him is electric -- is scalding -- is wide-eyed and unflinching. “a GAME? to you?”
Toothless and Hiccup are in the middle of having a staring match when it happens again. Toothless’ eyes go big and round, and his snout kind of -- wrinkles back, a little bit -- and he does something that’s a sneeze, but softer. Quieter.
It’s -- a chuff?
That might be the word, Hiccup thinks, brow furrowed, gaze darting between Toothless’ mouth and his eyes and back again. He doesn’t know what it means. But he’s heard it before -- several times, in situations just like this. Or situations like -- like...
His eyes widen. Like with the grass! The grass that the dragons like. After he rolls around in it and lays there, tongue lolling -- there’s a soft little chuff. Or like -- when Toothless collapses next to him after a long day of racing and chasing.
It’s a good sound. It’s a happy sound.
After a brief, head-tilting pause, Hiccup chuffs back.
Big "Half Of Me that I love and cherish and protect always and IS MINE FIRST EVEN IF HE HAS OTHER LOVED ONES" lick.
Unprompted but Needed
@bezzuba
▊▊▊-[❇]-▊▊▊—;
Laugh escapes his lift as a massive slimy pink forked tongue runs over him. Laying down between the two he loved it didn’t stop the dragon from jumping right on top of the bed to get to him. Hands paw at the dragons face as he ducks his face away from him to evade such tactics. He wasn’t unused to this kind of thing.
The bigger bed easily supports the dragon now but it didn’t stop shaking as it caused both Heather and Eret to flee it with the dragons morning behavior. Perhaps it was his way to cause the other two to not bicker first thing in the morning about a kiss.
It seemed it went to Toothless.
“Alright! Alright! Off! Off!” He laughs as the dragon continues his assault. His bed sheets are going to have to be cleaned now from all this saliva spilling onto it. Something else he was going to have to do besides other things already for the village. He tried to give his wife an apologetic look but she was laughing with the other.
‘My Night and Soul.’ His voice called out again as he got Toothless off of him. Sitting up as he was drenched and cleaned by dragon standards now as he grinned and then pulled the dragons face to him. He placed a wet face to his as he rubbed the night fury’s saliva back onto him.
Long and cold were the nights on Berk. During the winter season it seemed that only darkness covered the skies from the early moments of sun to the longest parts of night. That the sun was a blink and it was time to retire inside again. Laying on his bed he felt sleep allude him as he tried to huddle more under his covers. Bed gently creaking as he did. He was not used to such sleepless nights but he was anxious and felt he needed to do more. But he lay there trying to sleep as best as he could.
Perhaps he was making too much noise. He heard a gentle call in the silence of the night. ‘Half of me.’ It was Toothless who was speaking to him as green eyes opened slightly. Just peeking over the blanket as he saw the dragon was gone from his usual spot the ground.
Where did he go?
Eyes opened wider as he heard the frame of the bed creak under the weight of a a dragon. Toothless’ warning had been calling him before jumping or well rather slowly pawing up onto the bed. Hot breath hits the back of his neck as his eyes glance upwards as he sees a wing just over head. A dragons paw slowly being placed inches away from his nose as the night fury tries to find a way to fit onto the bed. But what he feels is a bit more different.
Toothless is an incredibly smart dragon. He feels the dragon shift onto the side as he inches slightly closer and closer as the other front paw wiggles under him. Drawing him closer as the dragon lay onto the bed. He feels warmth coming from the dragon as a black wing drapes over him. He shifts in paws to face the dragon. Hands pressing to the dragons chest. Eyes looking up to the dragon as he sees the side of his dragons neck rise and fall. The dragon pulling him ever closer to a soft purr resonates in his chest vibrating against his entire body as he smiled.
The dragon must have thought he was having a nightmare from his tossing and turning. Must have thought he needed comfort in his sleep.
With a smile on his face eyes finally slowly to close. The warmth of the dragons body and slight and gentle nuzzling lures him into the realm of sleep. Where he dreams of them both. Soaring high into the skies and into the stars. Into the heavens above to never return.
✩ ( grooming, brushing, or tending to their hair! )
Acts of Affection
@bezzuba
▊▊▊-[❇]-▊▊▊—;
Idling sitting at his desk he had been there for hours. The candle that sat on his desk was lit and was starting to run low as he knew he’d been here for a very long time. Pencil clacked as it rolled around the desk. As if flicking it away would give him something of an idea of anything. But nothing was coming to him. Green eyes flicked to the window nearby as he saw it was starting and slowly becoming day again. He had been up all night again. There was no use to going to sleep on these types of days. He was just going to be aroused from sleeping by a very antsy dragon who wanted to go flying at the crack of dawn.
Not that he minded going flying so early.
Early flights meant he didn’t have to hear the ever drowning annoyance that was the other riders. The shrill voice that came from some of them actually made him shiver in thought because they scared him out of his skin sometimes. He was not used to having what they said were friends. years of being rejected by his supposed peers because he wasn’t good enough for them made him feel awkward. The transition was weird. He didn’t like it. It wasn’t all bad. He had Toothless with him to get through it.
Sighing he watches as he starts to hear the shuffle of the night fury who lay so warm upon his slab of rock in the room. Had he been asleep on his bed the dragon would no doubt have jumped up onto the bed to sleep with him. But it was like he knew he was not there as he smiled a bit sleepily. Wings arching up as legs poked out from under the lithe ebony body. Deep breaths were seen as the dragons tail unwrapped from his curled up form. A fond smile spread across his. He never really got the privilege to see Toothless waking up but by the gods he was honored by it today. The dragon had a knack of being utterly adorable when he pleased and this was one of those moments.
Shifting from his chair he carefully came to the dragon. Slowly letting him know it was he who approached him so early and in such a vulnerable state.
‘My night and soul.’ His voice was soft and gentle as he approached the dragon. He heard a gentle croon come to him as he smiles gently. Coming closer as he sat against the dragon. Gentle touch pressing into his side as it runs up to the night fury’s head. Feeling every cool scale under his rough calloused fingers. They almost felt so much smoother compared to his rough skin.
‘Dreams are gone.’ He had not slept at all. The dragon had as he smiled as he turned to face him. Sleep still very much apparent on the dragons face as he pressed his forehead against his. A gentle sign of affection as he closed his eyes. It was comforting almost like a lure to fall asleep right then and there but he knew he needed to be awake. For his other half was awake.
That was when he felt it. The slick slimy feel of a wet tongue run over his cheek and up into his hair. A disgusted look appeared across his face as the dragon’s paw seemed to cross over him and pull him even closer. Tired the dragon maybe but he wasn’t too tired to groom his companion.
“Toothless.....no no stop!” He protested as he tried to helplessly wiggle away. But the dragon’s paw only became heavier on him as he groaned loudly in protest. There was no fighting this as he allowed the dragon’s slimy forked tongue run over him. Putting any imperfection of his hair to the way he liked. Even though he knew well he would fix it later. But he wouldn’t shove the dragon off. He was much too tired and he sorta well walked right into it. An almost purr was heard coming from the night fury’s chest as he merely sucked it up for the time being. He supposed he could allow this. It wasn’t like it felt all bad. It was rather relaxing in fact.
But his eyes kept slipping closed as the dragon continued to groom him. He was tired. Very tired as he relaxed against Toothless’ flank. Maybe just a little nap...
we haven't been following each other for long but wow am i glad that we are! you capture hiccup's voice so WELL and there is so much heart in your writing!! hot dang!!
Omg thank you so much. I also love how you write Toothless and I love you omg. Thank you much. I’ve only been following you for a day and I already love you <3
your prose? super duper lovely! your headcanons? they make so much SENSE that it's a huge pity they aren't actually canon! your love for your muses? absolutely delightful to see and hear (also, big same hat)! i am very glad that we've started writing together and i can only hope that we will continue writing together in the future!! 💙
