6. How to Explain your Dragon

Why did so many people need spoons?

With Mirabel’s help, Hiccup was able to make his deliveries without any problems. It was during this process that he realized just how many names were on the list. Was there a spoon shortage? Was this another magic thing he didn’t understand? He had asked his companion as they went from house to house, but she didn’t know either.

He supposed it didn’t really matter, as long as they got the job done.

Finally, they arrived at their last stop. The remaining name on the list that wasn’t crossed out belonged to a man called Osvaldo Ortiz, according to Mirabel. The pair walked up to his front porch. Mirabel taking the initiative to knock while Hiccup obtained the remaining box.

The door opened, and out came a rather portly man with a bright smile on his face. Hiccup noticed that his smile didn’t falter upon seeing who was at the door, nor did his eyes bug out, nor did he quickly mutter a prayer for protection. Unlike most of the other villagers. The whole town pretty much saw him as some crazy dragon hobo.

Hiccup wasn’t entirely sure he could dispute that.

The man pointed right at Hiccup, smile still bright. “Hey, I know you! You’re that crazy, dragon hobo!” Hiccup almost respected the boldness. “Whenever I see you in town I think, there’s no way this boy could be dangerous. He’s way too skinny! But then I think about that monster pet of yours, and remember that’s why everyone’s so scared of you!” He beamed at the boy, who responded with a deadpan frown. Ignoring Mirabel’s snickers, he wordlessly presented the final box of utensils to his customer. The man gleefully took the box, thanked the two for their time, and wished them a lovely day. It was actually a pleasant interaction, aside from all the insults.

The two made their way back, one sulking. Mirabel tried to cheer him up a bit. “Don’t mind Osvaldo, he’s like that with everybody.” Hiccup’s mood didn’t improve. “But he’s right, everyone thinks Toothless is dangerous. And that I’m some psychopathic who’s gonna use a dragon to destroy the town…” He noticed the girl wince a bit. “Well…you didn’t exactly make a great first impression.” At that, Hiccup just sighed.

“I was already an outcast in one village, I don’t need two villages hating me…” Mirabel stopped walking, and he knew she had heard his mumbling. He really should’ve kept his mouth shut.

“What do you mean, outcast?” She gently inquired. He really considered just brushing her off, but as he turned and looked into her deep brown eyes. Seeing the genuine concern she was showing for someone she barely knew. And thinking back to all the help she had given him; he was compelled against his better judgement to answer.

He spoke as they walked. “In my village, you were expected to act a certain way. Talk a certain way, think a certain way. And I…couldn’t.” His frown deepened as memories came flooding in. “From day one I was different. Everyone knew it. But despite that, I did everything I could for my village. To prove myself worthy of being a part of the community! But nothing ever worked…”

His voice took on a sullen tone. “Every time I tried to help something would go wrong. Eventually people insisted I didn’t help at all, nobody wanted me around. When I wasn’t being ignored, I was being beaten up by the other kids. I was considered useless, an accident, a hiccup.” He spoke that word, his own name, with an uncharacteristic toxicity. The girl’s eyes widened at the origin of his name.  “Is that why you left? Why you ended up here” She asked, voiced nearly a whisper.

His eyes were distant, unfocused. Looking at something she couldn’t see. “…They’re better off without me, no one will even notice I’m gone.” He began fiddling with his hands again. “I just-I just wanted to find somewhere we could live in peace. Toothless and I. Somewhere we could be happy. A place where I wouldn’t be treated like…you know…” He sighed as he heard her next question. “What about your family?” He hesitated. “…Don’t have any.” He finally looked to her, an action he was avoiding during the duration of their conversation. “Listen, I don’t expect you to know how this feels- “

He was cut off by a hug.

It was brief, and light. But it still left Hiccup frozen, eyes wide as dinnerplates. It was the first positive physical contact he had received in a decade.

Mirabel stepped back, a bit embarrassed by her sudden action. But she couldn’t help it, she knew exactly how the boy felt. “Actually, I kinda do…” She glanced away as he stood there, frozen. “It’s…hard to be the only Madrigal child without a gift…”

In that moment, he understood her. And she understood him.

Hiccup relaxed, and wore a sad smile on his face. “Guess we’re both a couple of hiccups, huh?” Her face lit up, and she laughed a bit. He released a few chuckles as well. But when she looked back at him, determination was in her eyes once more.

“One day! One day I’ll make my family proud, and I’m never gonna stop until that day comes!” She pointed a finger at his chest. “You can’t stop either, okay? One day you and Toothless are gonna find where you belong!” The natural cynic in him was inclined to disagree, but the girl’s optimism was infectious. He replied with an awkward, but earnest smile. “Yeah…one day.”

Hiccup’s delivery service was finished, and Mirabel bid him a cheery goodbye for the time being. As he watched her leave, he realized he saw her in a new light. She wasn’t plucky just for the sake of being plucky, she had managed to remain optimistic even through her turmoil. A feat he hadn’t come close to accomplishing. He had garnered some respect for the girl.

Smile still on his face, he returned to Ignacio’s forge.

…

He realized he had forgotten the empty crate, and doubled back to retrieve it.

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Upon reentering the forge, Hiccup’s ears were assaulted by the clanging of a hammer on metal. But after years of being a blacksmith’s apprentice, the sound didn’t bother him too much.

Ignacio paused from his hammering upon seeing the boy, pushing his goggles onto his forehead. “Welcome back, kid! How’d it go?” Hiccup presented the empty crate in response, placing it on a nearby table. Earning him a thumbs up from his temporary boss. “Wonderful! Great job, kid!” As he resumed his hammering, Hiccup stood in stunned silence. He hadn’t been told he’d done a good job in quite a while. First a hug, and now this? Today was just too weird. He decided to take his mind off things by heading to the back of the smithy and starting the blueprints for Toothless’ new tail.

He had managed to find some paper and a pencil, and was scribbling away when he heard some voices come from the front of the building. He tuned them out, figuring they were customers and that Ignacio could handle them.

As he sketched the specific details of the new tail’s calibration, he heard soft footsteps coming towards him. And before he could look up, he heard a small voice.

“Excuse me?”

Glancing away from his work, he noticed a small boy looking up at him.  Dark skin, wild curly hair…

Uh Oh.

This was the kid at the center of yesterday’s catastrophe, the one Toothless was playing with. Antonio, Mirabel had called him. The son of the weather Goddess. Hiccup felt a chill down his spine, hoping she wasn’t near and praying she didn’t think he was bothering her son. He wasn’t planning on getting struck by lightning anytime soon.

“Um, excuse me?” The young boy spoke up again. Hiccup tried to calm his nerves, and shakily responded. “H-Hello, how can I help you?” He hoped that didn’t come out as awkward as he thought it did. The child looked a bit nervous as he worked up the courage to ask his question.

“Could I…” The teen didn’t quite catch that last part, and asked him to repeat the question. The child fiddled with his hands as he looked at his feet. “Could I see the scaly puppy?”

Hiccup should’ve been surprised, but according to Mirabel the child had been quite enamored with his dragon.

Hiccup smiled apologetically. “Sorry, kid. But scaly puppy is sleeping right now.” The boy’s face fell. “Oh…” Hiccup glanced away from the downtrodden child. “Yeah, he’s the laziest Night Fury I’ve ever met. Then again he’s the only Night Fury I’ve ever met…” The boy’s eyes lit up. “Night Fury? What’s a Night Fury?” He turned back to the child. “Uh, that’s what scaly puppy is. A Night Fury. It’s a type of dragon.” The child’s eyes were sparkling with wonder. “A dragon? I thought dragons were just fairy tales!”

Now that, Hiccup couldn’t comprehend. Dragons being mythical? Figments of human imagination? He knew some people who’d love for that to be the case. But then he considered where he was, a magical place where violence didn’t exist. Of course these people didn’t have to deal with dragons. No wonder they were so scared yesterday.

“Oh no, kid. Dragons are definitely real. Several species of giant, flying, fire breathing reptiles. I used to see them all the time where I was from.” The child nodded, a silent plea for him to continue. Hiccup smirked at the young boy’s eagerness, and began to put his own dragon knowledge to the test.

“There are many types of dragons, but there are five who are the most common. First off, the Deadly Nadder…” He grabbed a piece of paper, and quickly sketched a Nadder to the best of his recollection before handing it to the boy. He had seen so many of them, he was sure it was accurate. “This dragon is covered head to toe in spikes, and they can fire them with pin-point accuracy. But their eyes are too far apart, so if you stand right in front of one, it won’t even see you.” Antonio looked at the paper in fascination, as Hiccup got to work on another sketch.

This one was simple to draw, as it was really just a collection of spheres. “The Gronckle. I know it looks kind of silly, but don’t be fooled! These dragons pack a punch. They eat rocks, melt them in their bellies, and spit the lava back at you!” As he handed the paper to the child, he added a comment. “Yes, I know their wings look too small for them to fly. But they can. No, I don’t know how.”

Quickly producing the next illustration, he took note of just how interested the boy seemed in learning about dragons. And teaching him is pretty fun, too! He wondered if this is how Gobber felt…

The child scrunched his face in confusion at the next drawing, a strange beast with more than the usual number of faces. Hiccup chuckled. “I don’t blame you, this dragon’s a weird one. The Hideous Zippleback. Two heads, double the danger. One head produces a flammable gas, and the other ignites it. Making huge explosions!” That last part was shouted with an extravagant hand movement, eliciting a “Woah!” from the child. “But sometimes, the two heads don’t get along. It can be fun to watch one fight itself.” Hiccup mimicked such an event by making faux Zippleback heads with his hands and having them bite at each other, getting the child to giggle.

The child made an audible “aww” at the latest drawing, a creature so small it couldn’t possibly be a threat. “The Terrible Terror! I know the name seems ironic, but it really isn’t. What they lack in size, they make up for in firepower. Not to mention they like to travel in flocks.”  He pointed his pencil to the boy. “Trust me, kid. Never make a flock of Terrors mad.” The child nodded, seemingly taking the teen’s advice very seriously.

One more drawing. Hiccup took great care with the detail on this one, trying to get across the terror meeting one in real life would inspire. “Behold, the Monstrous Nightmare. These are the biggest, baddest dragons you’ll ever come across. Jaws full of teeth, razor sharp claws, and a nasty habit of setting themselves on fire. Only the bravest warriors stand up to one of those and survive…” Now with all five pages of the miniature dragon manual in hand, the child flipped through them rapidly. Taking in the illustrations of these awe-inspiring beasts.

“But wait…What about the Night Furry?” Hiccup snorted at the miswording. “Night Fury, and you don’t need a picture. You’ve already seen one.” The child looked sullen once more. “But I want one…he’s my favorite…”

How could Hiccup say no to that?

He whipped up one more sketch, making sure to emphasize the more endearing aspects of his reptilian friend. Upon giving it to the child, Antonio gasped with joy. Hiccup smiled, a warmth spreading from his chest. “His name is Toothless.” The child looked to him, before suddenly slamming the papers on the desk and running to the front of the forge.

Well that was unexpected. Hiccup started to sweat again, had he said something wrong? Was this just the impulsiveness of a child at work?

Before he could think on it more, Antonio returned. Pulling a stout man with dark skin, tight curls, and a yellow button-up along with his hands.

“What is it, Tonito?” The man asked with a smile, clearly finding the humor in being dragged by such a small child. The man looked at Hiccup, and the smile faded. Recognition flashing in his eyes.

That wasn’t good. Anyone who recognized Hiccup in this town recognized him for only one thing.

Antonio spoke up before either Hiccup or the man could say anything. “Papa, he’s been teaching me about dragons!” The man, Antonio’s father, looked to Hiccup with suspicion in his gaze. “Is that so?”

Hiccup was really sweating under the man’s stare, nervous smile unmoving from his face. Antonio got his father’s attention again, and the man looked down to regard him. He pulled the papers from the desk and handed them to his father. “He made me these! And he was telling me about them! One has spikes, and one has two heads, and- “As the child rambled on in the way only an excited child could, his father sifted through Hiccup’s drawings. Fascination gracing his features. His smile slowly growing back as he listened to his son’s gleeful retelling of the prior events.

Hiccup noted that the man’s eyes flashed in recognition once more, and knew he had found Toothless’ page. Antonio tugged on his father’s sleeve to get his attention. “That’s why I needed you.” He pointed to the dragon on the paper. “His name is Toothless, I need you to write it down for me.” He looked towards Hiccup with a bright smile. “So I won’t forget!” His father looked towards Hiccup as well, brows furrowed. Hiccup, anxiously and wordlessly, handed the man his pencil.

He inspected the pencil in his hand, and looked to Hiccup once again. “Yesterday, you said this creature. This dragon, was just playing with my boy. Did you mean that?” The teen nodded. “I did, sir. He wouldn’t hurt anybody, especially not a kid. He was just scared by all the noise, he doesn’t like crowds.” The man snickered at that, mumbling something like “Reminds me of my daughter…” before inspecting the pencil a second time.

He looked to Antonio, begging him with big puppy dog eyes. He looked to Hiccup, sweating himself dry, and to that piece of paper. He hadn’t seen the beast in action, only heard retellings of what went down. But every single story emphasized how horrible the creature was. This drawing however displayed an animal that looked docile, playful, even…cute.

The man sighed, shaking his head with a smile. “I’m definitely getting zapped for this…” Before writing Toothless’ name on the paper. Antonio squealed and hopped around, hugging the piece of paper to his chest. His father laughing joyously at his son’s happiness, and Hiccup adding a few laughs himself.

“My wife hates you, you know.” Hiccup froze and looked back at the man. The hints of a mischievous glint in his eyes as he spoke. “She sees you as the guy who sicced a monster on our boy. You should hear the things she says about you, bro!” He wheezed out a laugh and Hiccup just wanted to disappear. His face grew more somber. “I don’t blame her, she was terrified. We both were. Can you imagine what it was like to see our son with that thing?” Hiccup hadn’t thought about it that way, the man saw understanding grace the boy’s face and nodded. “Exactly. And I got there late, bro! If anything had happened before I arrived…” He quickly shook off the fear that was creeping into him. Antonio tried to argue that he was fine, but his protests were waved off. “Grown-Ups never listen…” He grumbled to himself.

“But I’m not worried about the past, I’m thinking about the present.” He regarded the boy with a smile. “You know what I think? I think this is a big, fat, misunderstanding!” Hiccup sighed in relief. Yes! That’s exactly what it was! “You don’t seem like a bad guy, bro. Especially after seeing what you did for my boy.” He gestured to the illustrations in his hand. “I thought I was just dropping by the forge to pick up some spoons, I didn’t know I was bringing my son to school!” Another wheezing laugh that Hiccup awkwardly tried to return.

A large hand raised itself to Hiccup. The man looked at him expectantly. “So, we cool?” Hiccup nodded and returned the handshake. “Yeah, we’re cool.”

Hiccup felt a firm hand suddenly grip his shoulder. Antonio’s father still regarded him with a smile, but he could see the threatening aura in his expression. “And nothing like yesterday is gonna happen again, right?”  The teen sputtered a bit, and nodded frantically. The man released him, smile more genuine. “Good. And I’ll put in a good word with mi vida for you. Don’t need you getting electrocuted!” The man laughed at this like it was a joke, but Hiccup was very serious about it. He did not want to be electrocuted.

Antonio looked nervous again, and glanced up to his father. Puppy dog eyes in full force. “Um, if it’s okay…Can I visit Toothless sometime?” The man seemed shocked by the question, and thought it over for a bit. “We’d have to ask your mother, but…” He looked to Hiccup with a grin. “I don’t see why not?” The teen nodded his approval. “Yeah, sure! He’d love to see you!” Antonio’s smile was as wide as it could possibly be. His father took his sons hands. “Alright, Tonito. Time to head back. Say goodbye!” Antonio waved goodbye, smile still beaming. As Hiccup waved back, he spoke again. “And goodbye to you, Mr....” “Felix! And you?” After hearing the boy’s name, both father and son stood still. Eyebrows furrowed in confusion, before-

“PFFFFT, What kinda parent names their kid Hiccup!?” Felix was bursting with laughter, and he was still laughing as he exited the forge. Dragging Antonio behind him, the child turned to Hiccup and gave one more small wave. Which he returned. Thus concluded Antonio’s day of dragon training.

A short while later, a warble notified Hiccup that his friend was awake. After making his way downstairs, the dragon happily accepted the scratches Hiccup was giving him. “Good morning, sleeping beauty! You missed everything, we were just talking about you!” He then told Toothless about his day as he pet him, a habit he had formed back in the cove where they first met. It just felt good to speak openly to someone who would listen, who wouldn’t judge.

Even if he couldn’t talk back.

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That night, Felix got zapped.