Chapter 4: Catch My Breath

The fall passed quickly into winter and Snotlout found himself visiting Sigyn more and more often, at least once a week. He quit asking himself why he liked to be around her and just went to enjoy her company. He didn't even mind that he almost always got roped into helping Sigyn with whatever she was doing. She was hardly ever still and even when she was not physically active, her fingers were hard at work sewing.

Thus far he had helped to repair her roof, muck out the barn several times, and fix the chicken coop. On days she was sewing he sat and talked to her, sometimes helping her with simple stitch work and other times not. He had long since finished preparing all the green dragon scales for his tunic. Finding that he rather enjoyed the mindless task he asked her if there were more scales she needed prepared. Laughing, she obliged and gave him a sack of orange scales which were currently tucked in the corner under his bed away from prying eyes.

One morning he came early, surprising her. Hiccup and the twins were sick and training had been canceled for the day. Instead of stitch work, Snotlout convinced Sigyn to train with him. She was leery at first but with his and her father's combined urging she relented, so long as the training involved no dragons. He spent the first hour gauging her skill with the various weapons he brought and found her self-assessment to be mostly accurate. She was decent with a sword and he could tell that with time and practice she would make a competent sparring partner. Her skills with an ax, however, were lamentable as were her skills with just about any other weapon. The only exception to this was archery. With a bow in her hands, he had to grudgingly admit that she was better than him. He could pull the bow back farther, giving his arrows more speed and force, but hers were tightly clustered near the center of the target.

They trained a good portion of the morning away, sparring and swapping tips back and forth. With her help, he even managed to get his arrows to cluster in the center closer together. She didn't crow about it… much. That was one of the things he liked about Sigyn. She could be better at something and not rub it in his face, just offering advice when he asked for it… and sometimes when he didn't. Not only could she give advice, but she could take his as well. When he proved to have superior skills or knowledge she adjusted herself accordingly. That was on every subject except dragons. On the subject of dragons, she still held firmly that she would never fly on Hookfang or own a dragon. It had become somewhat of a running joke between them.

The only dragon she was willing to tolerate was Hookfang and here too, she was giving way. She began to allow Hookfang into the yard so long as he was resting quietly near the yak field. She was surprisingly willing to lavish attention on his ridiculously fawning dragon but he could still see the tension in her shoulders now and then, especially when Hookfang moved about. She still insisted that he and Hookfang take off and land further up the trail away from the house and barn but it was a definite improvement from when they had first met. He still wondered what had happened to make her fear dragons so much but she didn't volunteer anything and he didn't ask again.

Sigyn’s father, Torben Helvig, was an odd man. He was unusually cheerful despite his paralysis and near-total blindness. He always seemed genuinely pleased when Snotlout came around and often laughed at Snotlout and Sigyn's banter. Not all the man's teasing was focused on Sigyn, some of it was saved for Snotlout but it was not the same as the pointed and awkward questions from the first time they had met. It had been weird at first, being around Sigyn's father so much, but as the weeks went by Snotlout had grown accustomed to the man's barbed enthusiasm. To Snotlout’s delight, Torben even encouraged Sigyn to ride Hookfang, something that she groused about often.

The weeks had passed quickly and Snoggletog was just around the corner as was the time for the dragons to mate. In a few days, the dragons would all disappear for a little over a week and return only once the baby dragons could make the return flight. Until the dragon’s departure, training had been suspended. Like all other animals, when it came to the mating season, dragons became irritable and territorial. Hookfang and the other rider’s dragons were not immune to this exactly, but due to their training, they were much easier to control. The pet dragons in the village were tame but largely untrained, and the wild dragons around the island were unpredictable this time of year. Challenges and fights between dragons were not uncommon, even in the middle of the village. This made it necessary for the Dragon Riders to be available to jump in at a moment's notice to stop any trouble before the dragons could do any damage. To this end, the Dragon Riders had been spread around the entire island to patrol. Fishface and Astrid were in charge of the southern half of the village, in particular, the docks as a lot of the scuffles started over food. Hiccup and the twins were flying lazy loops around the outer edge and middle of the island. This left the northern half of the village to Snotlout and Hookfang.

Snotlout watched the snow-covered ground lazily as he and Hookfang flew back and forth over the village. The snow reflected blindingly up at him, but at least the white background made it easier to spot the colorful dragons. It was only mid-day and Snotlout was bored. Not that he didn't understand why they were patrolling it was just... nothing was happening. He wanted to go see Sigyn, but with patrolling the past week or so he had been too busy to sneak away. The last time he visited, Sigyn had seemed worried about something. He wanted to know what.

He shook himself, refocusing his gaze on the ground. Whatever. He would go see her once the dragons were gone in a few more days. Who knew, maybe he could get her to come to the Snoggletog feast as well. Probably. After all, there would be no dragons in town. Until then, baby or rather dragon sitting it was. At least he had a warm cozy seat while he had to be outside.

"See anything Fangster?" he asked, leaning forward to rub above Hookfangs eyes. His dragon rumbled and continued their low lazy flight over the village. "Yeah, me neither."

They finished their pass and turned a bit further north to skirt the edge of the village. Something suddenly had Hookfang's attention and Snotlout sat up straighter, scanning the ground. Beneath him, Hookfang veered slightly to the left and picked up the pace. There was definitely something... but what and...

"There!"

Hookfang dropped lower and Snotlout quickly took in the situation. A pair of deadly nadders were facing off between two large houses. One nadder was a green and pink dapple and the other was blue. They stamped in the snow, their heads bobbing, for all the world looking like giant preening chickens. Two males. Shocker. The green and pink was a juvenile, probably too dumb to realize that the blue one was almost twice its size. Stupid dragon. The blue dragon he recognized as being attached to the family just a few houses over, although he was unsure about the juvenile. Perhaps it was wild. Why couldn't people watch after their pets? Either way, clearly no one was paying them the slightest bit of attention. Probably out buying or selling for Snoggletog. So now it was his job to break up the pair.

Without prompting Hookfang landed and lowered his head so Snotlout could dismount. How exactly did he want to approach this? He had been grazed and nicked enough times by Stormfly’s spines to know that it was inadvisable to get shot again. While not dangerous in any real way other than impalement, nadder spines were coated with a mild venom that stung almost as bad as the time Ruff and Tuff had dropped a beehive on him as a kid. The dragons held their spiked tails at the ready, barbs out. He was tempted just to watch and make sure the dragons didn't resort to their magnesium breath. There was no one around and so long as all they were doing was preening and shooting a few spines, there was not any real reason to get involved.

The pair have not even noticed him and Hookfang arrive. He glanced at Hookfang and frowned. Something was up with his dragon. Hookfang’s long neck was outstretched toward the alleyway, his nostrils puffing steam. He was clearly agitated. Great. Just what he needed, another territorial dragon getting into the mix.

"Get it together, Hookfang," he said, reaching confidently for his dragon’s horns, just in case he needed to calm him. "Come on, let's just separate these two and be done." But Hookfang pulled out of his grip and whimpered. Snotlout frowned. Hookfang whimpering, or as close to it as he ever came? Maybe he wasn't getting territorial after all.

"What is it, big guy?" He reached for his dragon, this time to rub his chin. At that moment the juvenile nadder let loose a barrage of spines, several of them embedding in the walls of the house nearby. A muffled scream came from the alleyway.

"Odin's beard,” he cursed lowly. He kicked himself mentally and yanked his ax and shield off Hookfangs saddle. He should have made sure there was no one in the alleyway. Any adult in the village could handle a dragon, which probably meant it was a kid. Stupid. Should have checked. Where was the kid anyway? His eyes slid over the dragons and landed on some barrels and sacks about halfway down the alley. A sack toppled over spilling potatoes out into the ankle-deep snow. Gotcha. After glancing over his shoulder at Hookfang he darted down the alley his shield held between him and the nadders. The blue dragon swung its tail in agitation and Snotlout raised his shield and braced to block the blow. He was about ten paces from the barrels now.

"Hey, kid!" he called, keeping an eye on the nadders as he yanked a spine free from his shield. "Come out of there already. I’ll cover you."

There was no reply. The kid was probably too scared to move. He'd have to go and drag the kid out and then have Hookfang separate the fighting dragons. Nadders were aggressive but flighty and Hookfang far outweigh the both of them put together. He reached the barrels and searched for the kid. There was someone tucked between the sacks but they were too big to be a kid. Who was it?

“Hey let's get out of here,” he called to the head of blond hair tucked under a pair of arms. “Come on!” The arms dropped hesitantly and brown eyes stared up at him. Wide, terrified eyes set in a very familiar face.

“Thor's hammer! Sigyn? What are you doing here?" No wonder Hookfang had been acting odd.

"D...dragons!" she said in a tremulous whisper. She was pressed back against the wall of the house behind her, crouching in the snow. Her eyes were wide and panicked as she watched the dragons behind him and her hair was wild and unkempt as though it had not been tended to for a while. What was going on?

He ducked behind his shield again as the blue dragon let fly a barrage of spines. One ricocheted off the barrels and grazed his left forearm, sending a stinging pain up his arm and into his shoulder. He hissed out a curse and looked at Sigyn. She seemed unharmed, just frightened. Good. Now if he could just get her out of the alley, but she looked about as likely to be pried from her spot as Hookfang did from his food. In short… not likely. Perhaps that was best. The shield was not large enough to cover them both. He could have carried a kid and held the shield, but a terrified Sigyn was another thing entirely. Well, if they couldn't get out of the alley the next best thing was...

"Hookfang!" His dragon’s attention snapped to him. “Break this up and get rid of them. I'll cover Sigyn."

He ducked closer to Sigyn, peeking over the top of his shield which he held to block any stray spines. Hookfang gave a deafening roar, finally catching the nadder’s attention. Sigyn’s fingers were instantly latched onto his arm with a vice-like grip. He was glad it wasn't his left arm. Thor, her grip was strong, stronger than he would have guessed. How much of that was fear and how much was her?

The ground shook as Hookfang stomped closer. Both nadders turned to face his much larger dragon, their hackles up, tails ready to fire. The juvenile shot several spines at Hookfang but his dragon opened his jaws, spewing his molten fire and burning up the spines mid-flight. Hookfang let out another roar and the smaller nadder turned tail and flew away. Odin, he loved that Hookfang made it on intimidation alone! A few seconds later the adult nadder seemed to realize it was on its own and quickly followed the juvenile into the air. Snotlout lowered the shield as Hookfang approached cautiously.

"Nice going Fangster," he said, patting his dragon’s snout. Sigyn’s grip tightened as she pulled further behind a barrel. Hookfang instinctively backed up. He was a smart dragon... most of the time. Snotlout turned his attention back to his... friend? Yes! Sigyn was a friend.

"Hey," he said, setting his ax aside so his hands were empty. He turned to her, kneeling in the snow.

“Sigyn? What's going on? Why are you out here?" She was still panicking. He pried her fingers off his arm and took her by the shoulders. "Hey, Sigyn. Relax. The nadders are gone. It's just me and Hookfang." Behind him, Hookfang let out a low rumbling thrum and some of the tension seemed to leach out of Sigyn’s shoulders. Her eyes focused on him, seeing him for the first time since he’d arrived.

"Snotlout?"

“Hey, there you are," he said, letting go of her and getting to his feet. No sense getting wetter in the snow than he needed to. "What are you doing out here? It's almost the dragon’s mating season. They are all on edge. You…”

"I need Gothi," she blurted, scrambling to her feet, the panicky look back in her eyes.

"Why? What's wrong? You look fine to me. Are you hurt?" She looked at him, her eyes immediately tearing up. Oh Loki, no. Not tears. He didn’t know what to do when people cried. What was wrong? What had he done?

"My dad! Snotlout, he's sick,” she said, trying to get past him and break out of the alleyway. He caught her hand before she could run.

"Sick how?" She pulled at his hand but he didn't let go. She was still spooked and not thinking straight. She might run into another dragon.

"He... He can't breathe Snotlout," she sobbed.

His mind stalled and then jerked back into action. Sigyn and Gothi lived on opposite ends of the village. How long has she already been away from her father?

“He… he gets really sick during the winter. I’ve done all I know, but nothing is helping! I've never seen him this bad. He’s gasping for breath. If it gets any worse … I … I need Gothi!”

"Let’s go,” he said, pulling her towards Hookfang.

“What are you doing?” she said, trying to twist out of his grip. "Gothi’s is that way. I have to get her!"

“I know I know," he said, dragging her closer to Hookfang. “But going on foot is too slow. If your dad really can't breathe you can't waste time. I'll take you to Gothi’s now."

"You mean fly on Hookfang?” He let go of her hand and climbed into the saddle.

"Yes, on Hookfang.” She hesitated and he could see her fear battling with her father's need.

"Look, I'm not going to make you come but Gothi will need a ride. Her terrible terrors are no good for flying and she walks way too slow. I can get her without you if you like, but it's best if you come with me. I don't know what to tell her and I can never understand what she is saying. We can grab Gothi and be back to your dad in less than ten minutes. But if you can’t ride Hookfang you can wait here. I'll come back and walk with you after I drop Gothi off at your house. It's up to you."

Something in her expression clicked and she stepped toward him. Thank Thor. He really didn't want to go see Gothi alone. She took the hand he held out to her, but then hesitated again.

"You won't... you won't let me fall?" He pulled her into the saddle in front of him.

“I promise. Hookfang and I will not let you fall. Hold tight to his horns. We're going to go pretty fast." He waited for her hands to grip Hookfangs horns, her knuckles turning white. "Hookfang let's go!"

In a matter of seconds, Hookfang was in the air and headed east to Gothi’s house, flying low over the trees. In front of him, Sigyn was a bundle of nerves. Hookfang’s speed pushed her back into his chest and he could feel every one of her muscles like a rock against him.

"Hang on," he said close to her ear so she could hear. "We're almost there.” She didn't respond.

Hookfang angled himself to ascend as they approached Gothi’s stilted hut. Why on earth the healer’s hut was perched atop a tower of rock and not in the middle of the village he never understood. The hike up to see her would kill you if your injuries or illness didn't. How did she even climb up all those steps and ladders anyway?

The flight was over before it had really begun and Hookfang set down gently on the platform in front of Gothi’s hut. Snotlout was about to ask who should get the old woman went Sigyn clambered down and was inside the hut before he could open his mouth. That answered that.

Sigyn’s muffled voice came from the hut and Snotlout leaned forward, tapping a finger impatiently on Hookfang’s horn as he waited. What was taking so long? Didn't Gothi understand that Sigyn's father couldn't breathe? The moments dragged into eons and finally, the two of them emerged. Sigyn rushed over and without waiting for help had herself situated in front of him once again. Gothi shambled over, her steps painfully slow. Thank Thor he had insisted on taking her himself. They couldn't wait any longer. He lept down, grabbed the bulging pack from her, and tossed it to Sigyn who slung it over her shoulder so it was in front of her.

“Come on old lady," he said, picking up Gothi. Odin, she was heavy for a stunted old bat. “We can't wait any longer." He put her on Hookfang behind the saddle and remounted, dodging a swing from her stick.

"Let's go Hookfang!" he called, being sure Sigyn had a good grip on his dragon’s horns once again. Hookfang leapt off the high platform and dove away to the west. Sigyn shrieked as she slipped forward on Hookfang’s neck and Snotlout quickly wrapped a hand around her waist pulling her back into him. At the same moment, Gothi slammed into his back and boney fingers clawed into his ribcage. He squirmed until at last, she settled for gripping what little of his tunic and vest she could. Hookfang leveled out, streaking over the village. Snotlout was not sandwiched between the two of them for very long. In a moment they were descending toward the trees once again.

"Just land in front of the house,” said Sigyn, turning her head so he could hear her. He nodded and let go of her waist to grip Hookfang’s horns, angling them towards a small clearing that made up Sigyn's yard. Hookfang touched down and Sigyn dismounted, dashing into the house and calling for her father. Snotlout slid off Hookfang and turned to grab Gothi but had to duck once again as the old bat swung her stick in his direction. Slipping down to the ground Gothi pointed toward the house making a shooting motion. He took the hint and followed Sigyn.

Coming through the front door he could hear gasping, wheezing, coughs coming from the back room. He clenched and unclenched his fists, unsure what to do. At least it sounded as though her father were not totally without air, but it was still not good. He glanced over his shoulder. Hopefully, Gothi could treat him. He crept forward and stood in the doorway of the back room that made up Torben’s room. Her father was propped up in bed in a dirty nightshirt. His face was white and his lips had a bluish hue. Sigyn stood next to her father looking more panicked and worried than her father. Her father struggled for breath but seemed oddly calm and … resigned. Why was he...

"Where is Gothi?" asked Sigyn when she spotted him. Her voice was tense and he could see that tears were threatening to spill down her cheeks once again. He opened his mouth to answer but a stick rapped him sharply on the shoulder and he jumped out of the way allowing the healer past him. Gothi immediately went to Torben’s side and began to dig in her bag. Snotlout turned and was about to duck back out to the main room when Sigyn called after him.

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"Snotlout." He stopped and looked at her. "We need to give him a bath." He wrinkled his nose.

"A bath?"

"A hot one. Gothi told me this steam would help. Can you…"

"I'll take care of it," he said, nodding.

“Thank you,” she said, turning back to her father.

He retreated to the main room and looked around. He knew the washtub was kept behind the house. He would have to bring it in but where would he put it? He shoved the table aside to make room and grabbed the cleaner of the two large hanging cauldrons. He looked inside. He'd need to clean it out first. He carried it outside and left it in the stream to soak as he carried the tub into the house. In a few minutes, the caldron was clean. He filled it with icy water and carried it back around to the front of the house. He was about to lug it inside and hang it over the fire when he stopped. He set the cauldron in the yard and turned to Hookfang.

"Hookfang, Flames!" he called, pointing to the bottom of the cauldron.

In less than a minute steam was floating over the surface of the water. Retrieving the buckets from the garden he hauled water back and forth from the stream and cauldron into the house, mixing the hot and cold in the washtub. He had just about finished when Gothi shambled from the back room and dumped a bowl full of foul-smelling paste into the water and stirred it around with her stick. She nodded approvingly at him and then pointed to the back room. He moved to the doorway and found Sigyn carefully lifting her father into her arms. She stumbled slightly, taking on his weight and Snotlout moved forward to help her.

"I've got him,” she said, readjusting her grip. He moved out of her way ready to step in should she falter again. Her father's breathing had eased somewhat but his breaths were still shallow and labored, interspersed with an occasional cough. Sigyn lowered her father into the tub, nightshirt and all, and then turned to Gothi.

"What else can we do?” she asked, rubbing red marks into her arm as she watched her father struggle for breath. The old healer scraped her staff across the floor leaving marks in the thick layer of dust. Snotlout had seen her do this before but he didn't understand the strange combination of shorthand and symbols she used. Luckily Sigyn did.

“She says the more steam the better,” said Sigyn, looking up at him. "But I don't know how to do that without burning him."

"I do,” he said, feeling relieved that there was something he could do other than stand around. “But you're not going to like it."

"I rode a dragon today, how much worse could it get? Whatever it is, do it.”

"Alright but don't freak out." He ran out onto the porch. "Hookfang, come here!" Hookfang looked at him and stood but didn't come closer. He went to his dragon.

“Come here, big guy. Sigyn needs you." He turned to examine the porch and front door. The doorway was not wide enough for Hookfang and he wasn't sure the squeaky porch was up to his dragon’s weight either. He led Hookfang around to the side of the house and pulled off his saddle.

"Wait here," he instructed before hurrying back inside. Without explanation, he brushed past Gothi and Sigyn and went to the window and threw it open wide. "Come here Hookfang," he said, reaching to pull his dragon’s head through the window and into the room.

"Snotlout! What are you doing?” asked Sigyn, rushing over. "Get him…”

"Just trust me," he said as Hookfang hesitantly pushed his head and neck into the room. "This is the best way to make lots of steam."

"But..."

“Sigyn!” gasped Torben. She paused to look at her father. “Trust him.”

“Hookfang is not going to knock your house down. I promise,” said Snotlout, pulling Hookfangs head toward the tub. “Over here Fangster." He patted the edge of the tub. Sigyn’s father pushed himself further up in the tub wheezing. Hookfang carefully rested his neck across the foot of the wooden tub.

“All right, Hooky, heat no flames. Here," he said, rubbing the portion of his dragon’s neck that was draped over the tub. Almost at once, Hookfang’s skin began to heat under his hand.

"What are you doing?” asked Sigyn. He didn't reply but instead cupped his hands together and scooped up some of the bathwater and dribbled it over Hookfang’s neck. The moment the water hit the heated scales it sizzled away creating a small cloud of steam that wafted towards Sigyn’s father.

“See," he said. “Lots of steam but no one gets burned, well so long as you don't touch Hookfangs neck."

Gothi dumped more paste into the tub and scooped some of the water up in a bowl, spilling it over Hookfang’s neck. The old healer nodded approvingly and handed the bowl to Snotlout before shuffling away to mess with her bag in the corner. Sigyn came to stand beside him as he scooped and dumped, scooped and dumped, scooped and dumped. She rubbed absently at Hookfang’s nose, watching her father and his dragon began to thrumb lowly.

Snotlout swiped a hand across his forehead. It was getting hot in here. Very hot, but at least the steam seemed to be working. Torben’s breathing was beginning to even out bit by bit and he had stopped wheezing as much. Snotlout shifted uncomfortably. His clothes were moist and clingy.

"Here," said Sigyn, taking the bowl from him. “Let me do that. You look like you're going to melt.” Gladly, he gave it to her and stepped away. She glanced at him. "Your face is red. Do you want to go outside?"

“Yeah," he said. "You good here?” She nodded and looked at her father.

"I think... I think the worst is over. He'll be okay now. Gothi is working on something for him."

"You're sure?" She nodded, dragging over a chair to sit beside the tub. She didn't even jump when Hookfang shifted his head to rest across her knees as she continued to pour water over his neck. Snotlout hesitated only long enough to see her rubbing Hookfang's chin before he could no longer stand the heat.

Out on the porch was not much better. Wet clothes and winter didn't mix well. He shivered, unsure what to do. He could go stand next to Hookfang, but he didn't want to risk distracting his dragon while his head and neck were inside the house. Irritated grunts came from the barn where the two yaks were kept. He made his way quickly through the snowy yard to the barn and slipped the latch, grateful for the wave of musty warmth that greeted him, even if it did smell of animals. The cow yak stamped impatiently as his eyes adjusted to the dim light and the calf lay in the straw near the back. He stepped further inside, looking around.

The feed trough and water were both empty. No wonder they were upset. Just how long had Sigyn’s father been sick? He set about tending to the animals, filling their food and water, mucking out the stall, and even attempting to milk the cow. It was late in the season but surprisingly she still had a little milk to give. He’d just finished with the yaks when he remembered the chickens. Trudging around to the back he repeated with the chickens, collecting their eggs. It had definitely been a few days if the basket of eggs was anything to go by. Coming back around to the front of the barn he noticed that Hookfang was missing. His dragon wasn’t in the yard either. Milk and eggs in hand he went back to the house. Not only was Hookfang missing, so was Gothi. The main room was empty. He set the milk and eggs aside and moved toward the back room only to bump into Sigyn.

"Snotlout, there you are," she said, brushing her loose hair from her face. "I thought you left." There were bags under her eyes and her shoulders were slumped with fatigue.

"Kind of hard when Hookfang is missing. Have you seen him?” Sigyn frowned.

“Gothi rode off on him a few minutes ago." He didn't much like that idea, but they was nothing he could do about it now. Whatever, Hookfang would be back.

"How's your dad?”

"Doing much better. I just need to prepare some medicine and food for him. Will you sit with him? You know, make sure he's all right. Sometimes he relapses." She didn't wait for him to answer as she slipped by him. He slunk awkwardly into her father's room and took up residence in the chair beside the bed.

"Snotlout," said her father hoarsely, nodding in his direction.

"Hey," he asked uneasily. “Are you feeling better?”

"Much better," her father said, leaning back further into the pillows. “Just... tired. These attacks are exhausting. This has been the worst yet. I'm not sure if..." but he trailed off. A tense silence thick as yak butter blanketed the room and Snotlout looked around the room trying to distract himself. Torben was in clean clothes and his bedsheets had been swapped as well. His knee bobbed up and down. How long would Sigyn be?

"Thank you," said her father at last.

"For what?" he asked, startled.

"For taking care of the animals."

"How… how did you know?”

Her father gave a small chuckle that turned into a coughing fit. Snotlout waited anxiously for him to recover, unsure if he should get Sigyn, but after several seconds the fit subsided.

"How did you know?" he asked again. Her father tapped an ear as he sunk back into the pillows.

"The animals are quiet now. Either they all died of neglect at once or someone tended to them."

"Oh, right,” he said, pushing his helmet further up on his head. “It just needed doing.” He picked at a loose thread in his pants as it grew quiet again."

"Can I ask a favor of you?” pressed her father.

"I guess so.” He didn't exactly want to turn him down, but was unsure what he was getting into.

"Keep an eye on Sigyn for a while? At least until I'm well again. She won't admit it to anyone, but she can't always keep up with everything."

"I'd noticed,” said Snotlout, tugging the errant string free from his pant leg.

"I know you have. It's one of the many reasons you keep coming around... though I suspect it's far from the only reason."

Snotlout didn't answer right away. If he were honest, in the back of his mind he had already been planning to check in on Sigyn over the next few days, if only to make sure that the animals were fed and watered.

"I don't ask that you do much. I know you are busy with other things."

Snotlout groaned. Odin's beard. He was supposed to be patrolling the village. There was no way Hiccup and the others had not noticed he was gone by now. He sighed. Whatever. It couldn't be helped now and Sigyn had needed him more.

"Can I count on you Snotlout?" asked her father, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"Hnn?... Oh. Sure. I guess I could do that."

"Thank you," said her father. Snotlout shrugged and then remembered her father could not see.

“No problem," he said. Torben seemed to relax a bit more into the pillows.

Sigyn appeared in the doorway with a tray of food and a steaming mug of something that, given the smell, Snotlout was glad was not for him. He got gratefully to his feet, making way for Sigyn next to the bed.

“Thanks," she said, touching his arm afterr she’d set the tray down.

"Sure.” He wished that they would quit thanking him so much. It was weird.

He shuffled out of the room closing the door behind him and made his way to the porch to see if Hookfang was back yet. He found no sign of his dragon. He did however find Hookfang’s saddle where he'd left it in the snow. Crazy old bat hadn’t even put the saddle back on. Whatever, it was her thighs, not his. He set the saddle on the porch and went back inside. He didn't want to wait in the cold but he felt awkward just sitting there alone in Sigyn’s house. Still feeling the chill from outside he made his way towards the fireplace and then frowned.

He hadn't noticed it before in the heat of the moment but now that things were quiet he looked around the main room. It was more cluttered and messy than normal. Sigyn didn't keep a very tidy house, unlike his mother, but with all that Sigyn had to keep up with daily, he didn't really blame her. The house was a mess. Sigyn was prone to clutter, but there was usually a method to her madness, at least when it came to her tailoring supplies. But as he looked around the room he had to admit that it had advanced further than he had ever seen it before. The ashes were piled so high in the fireplace that they had begun to spill out across the floor. Dirty dishes were stacked randomly around the room and the scrap bin in the corner was so full it would have been swarmed with flies were it summer.

He bit his lip debating with himself. He'd already taken care of the animals, so why not? Because cleaning the house was a woman's work, that’s why not. That’s what his father had taught him from a young age. Yet even if that were true, his mother had raised him knowing full well how to do just about everything she did, except maybe cooking… and he could still do a little of that. It wasn’t hard to clean house. As the oldest of three, he’d found himself helping his mother in secret often enough, especially when Adelaide and Geoffrey were small. His father had been away a lot with Stoic hunting dragons so it was easy to keep it from him. When his father had finally caught him cleaning dishes he’d been angry, insisting it was not fit work for a firstborn male Jorgenson, or a warrior. From that day on five-year-old Adelaide had taken over the house with his mother and shortly after Snotlout had been put into Dragon Training with the others.

But his father was not here, so what did it matter? The house needed cleaning and it was clear that Sigyn was in over her head at the moment. So what if it was woman's work. It was not like Sigyn would tell anyone. She may not even notice or remember with how distracted she was today. That suited him just fine. He didn't want to leave without talking to her and Hookfang was still not back, but he couldn’t just sit around doing nothing either. He didn’t like being still.

First, he emptied the fireplace and relit the fire using the monstrous nightmare gel from his saddle pack. After dumping the ashes and scraps bucket into the pile in the corner of the garden he brought the cauldron of water in and hung it over the flames. He emptied the washtub but shoved it in the corner in case Sigyn needed it again for her father. He gathered the dishes into a pile to scrub but practically had to clean cobwebs off the broom before he could use it. Clean dishes stacked to the side and a fresh firewood tucked beside the fireplace he turned his attention to Sigyn’s sewing supplies. He didn't want to move them around too much, knowing she would have a hard time finding them later if he did. He settled for moving a majority of her supplies onto the table, trying to group like things together. When all was tidied as best he knew how he sank into the chair by the fire. As the heat washed over him, his body began to relax and his eyes grew heavy.

It had been a long few days with dragon patrolling, particularly today. He rubbed a hand over his face knowing he still had to face the others later. At least they would never think to look for him here. Maybe it was better that Hookfang wasn't coming back. They couldn't follow him here.. and… they couldn't...

A cold sensation on his arm jolted him awake. When had he fallen asleep?

"Hey, sorry," said Sigyn. She had pulled the other chair up next to his and was dabbing at the cut on his right arm with a wet rag. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's fine," he said, sitting up straighter. The cut on his arm was not deep and the venom from the nadders spine had long since worn off. In all honesty, he had completely forgotten about the cut. "Has Hookfang turned up yet?"

She shook her head as she reached for the bottle of stinging liquid. He’d become very familiar with that particular little bottle as Sigyn seemed to attack even the smallest cut or scrape with the stuff. He had long since given up protesting when it came to Sigyn and first aid. He sat back and let her tend to the cut.

"So what exactly happened with your dad? How long has he been sick?”

"A few days," she said, setting the cloth aside and leaning back in her chair. "He has trouble breathing other times during the year but it can get really bad when it's cold outside. It's gotten much worse since the accident but it's never been this bad before.”

"But how did it get this bad? Doesn't Mrs. Ingerman come check on you guys?”

"Normally yes, but last time I saw her she said two of her kids were sick. We haven't seen her in almost a week so I suspect they're all sick now. That’s probably where we got it to be honest."

Now that he thought about it, Fishface had been sick for a few days the past week. He'd missed patrol and had only been back for a day or so. Fishlegs was the second oldest of six children in the Ingerman household. If they were sick it could take a while for it to run its course through the entire family. Sigyn leaned her head back in her chair, her eyes closing. She looked pale and there was sweat on her face.

"When's the last time you slept?" he asked. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine,” she said, waving a hand. “I've just been busy." She didn't look fine. She looked more than just tired. But he didn't press the issue. Instead, he changed tactics.

"So... when are you going to show me those wings you sprouted?" She opened her eyes, her brows pulling together in confusion as she sat up, her elbows leaning on her knees.

“What in Valhalla are you talking about?"

"Well, you said you were more likely to sprout wings than you were to ride Hookfang. So... where are they?"

"Hardy, har, har,” she said mirthlessly, slouching back in her chair. "I didn't have much of a choice did I?”

“Maybe not but... But still... Was it as horrible as you always imagined it to be?"

"I never imagined it happening at all.” But then she paused a moment to think. “To be honest I was too caught up in the moment to remember much. Well, except for that crazy dive off Gothi’s house." She shuddered.

“That just means we'll have to go flying again when you're less distracted.”

"Don't count on it.”

"Oh, I am,” he said, winking at her. She gave a half-hearted chuckle.

“Never give up, do you?”

“Never. Is Hookfang back?”

"I don't know," she said, looking at the door.

"I should probably go and find him. If I had to guess I’d say he went back to the academy.”

“Without you?” she asked. He shrugged.

"Are you going to be all right with your dad and all?”

"I think so. Gothi left some extra herbs in case he has trouble again and some medicine for the sickness.” They fell into silence again and he threw another log on the fire.

"Hey, Snotlout,” she said, catching his eye.

"Yeah?"

“Thanks for everything today." She looked around the room. "And I mean everything." He shrugged, trying not to think about it.

“Sure. No big deal."

"It is a big deal,” she insisted, leaning toward him. "I would still be stuck in that alley if you hadn't shown up.”

"It was my job today with the dragons on edge. It’s just too bad that that's when you had to come out into town. Probably the worst time of year for you to encounter dragons with breeding just around the corner. It's the one time your fears of dragons might actually be somewhat understandable."

"Somewhat understandable?” she said, raising an eyebrow.

"They're not that bad if you know how to handle them."

"You mean if you have Hookfang at your back," she said, poking the cut on his arm.

“Yeah, yeah," he said, pulling away. "Think what you want. Anyway, I should get going. I was kind of supposed to be somewhere." He got to his feet and she followed him out onto the porch.

"Hey, Snotlout," she said as he swung Hookfang’s saddle over his shoulder. He looked up at her from the bottom step. "Really, thank you for all your help. I don't know how today would have ended if you hadn't found me.”

"Don't worry about it," he said, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck.

"And let me guess, don't mention it either," she said. He shrugged and then flashed her a toothy grin.

“Your choice. If women find out how great I am you might lose me to someone else. You wouldn’t want that would you?” he asked, his free hand resting at his belt.

"No, I wouldn't," she said, grinning tiredly. He waved goodbye and disappeared into the trees.

Ten minutes of tromping through the snow and he was back in the village. He made his way towards the alley where he’d found Sigyn. In the urgency of the moment, he had left his ax and shield behind. He skirted the edge of the village, hoping to avoid the detection of the other riders. He had almost reached the alley when he heard the others approaching from the air. It was the twin’s continuous banter that gave them away. The moment they're arguing gave way he knew he'd been spotted.

"There he is!" called Tuffnut’s voice from above. Swell... exactly what he wanted right now; Hiccup and the others pestering him for not being on duty.

"We found him!" shouted Ruffnut as Barf and Belch set down in the snow. He sighed, bracing himself mentally as the others approached and landed one by one.

"Where have you been?" accused Astrid, leaping from Stormfly and advancing toward him. Thor, he loved the way her blue eyes flashed when she was angry. Just maybe not all her anger usually led to. "We have been looking for you for over an hour!” Just how angry was she?

"We? Or just you?" he asked, hand on hip. “Just say the word Astrid and I'll never leave your side again.”

She shoved closer to him, jamming a finger into his chest. "You have no idea how much trouble you caused do you?" she growled. So... pretty mad. When she was irritated or annoyed with him she would throw him around or hit him. Well not always him… but usually him. When she was really angry she tended to yell and shove. It was when she went silent and livid that she was really dangerous... and hot... but mostly just dangerous. She was still yelling so he was okay.

"What's the worst that could happen other than you missing me?” he said as Fishface landed.

"Well how about a dragon fight breaking out in Town Square,” said Fishlegs. "It took me, Astrid, and Hiccup to break it up by the time we got there. If you'd been doing your job it never would have escalated that far.”

“Hey! No one asked you!" shot Snotlout glaring at him. His gut clenched. Town Square was right in the middle of the northern half of the village where he was supposed to have been patrolling.

"What about us?" asked Tuff. "We were there too."

"Yeah," said Hiccup, dismounting Toothless. "But I hardly called taking bets on the winner as helping."

"But there was good entertainment value in that fight,” said Ruff, examining her nails. "Besides we made a killing."

"Yeah,” said Tuff excitedly. "Who would have imagined that Hiccup..."

"Guys, focus," called Hiccup, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Snotlout, where have you been? Why weren’t you covering the northern half of the village like we agreed?”

Snotlout could feel all their eyes on him, particularly Astrid and Fishface. Hiccup watched him expectantly, seeming more exasperated and tired than angry. Whatever. He was done with them. He just wanted to find Hookfang. They probably wouldn't believe him anyway.

"I had to help a friend, alright. She was in trouble."

There was a silent beat before the twins and Fishlegs broke into peals of laughter.

"Yeah right,” said Tuff, wiping an imaginary tear from his face. "At least lie more realistically. You expect us to believe that there's someone out there who likes to have you around other than us?”

"Or a girl that you haven't offended yet?” said Astrid, her arms folded over her chest, a delicate eyebrow raised in disbelief.

His free hand clenched and his nails dug into the leather of Hookfang’s saddle. Tuffnut could be fun to hang around with when Snotlout wasn’t the target of the twin’s crazy pranks, which tended to go too far. But sometimes, every now and then, Snotlout wanted to sock the skinny blond right in the nose. Come to think of it, he already had a few times and right now his fist was itching for a good swing.

"He was probably just sleeping in a barn somewhere,” said Ruffnut, pointing. "Look there's even straw and yak dung on his clothes and boots.” He looked down and saw she was right. How had he missed that?

"Shut up Ruff!" he growled. If she weren't a girl...

"Sounds about right,” said Astrid, huffing as she turned away from him. "It wouldn't be the first time."

Why did they always assume that if he was not exactly where he was supposed to be that he was slacking off somewhere? Granted, sometimes he really was slacking off, but that was really only to tick off Hiccup and he only ever did it when it wouldn't matter. Yet no one ever seemed to remember that when they really needed him, he was there. But what was he expecting? It has been this way for years. He didn't care.

"Alright, alright," said Hiccup, stepping forward. "I'll deal with Snotlout. The rest of you go make sure nothing else happens in the village. The last thing we need is more trouble today." Grumbling, the others mounted their dragons and took off in various directions. It was just him and Hiccup now.

"Where's Hookfang?" asked his cousin, his eyes roving over him. "Why are you carrying his saddle?”

"Why do you care?" he snapped.

"Just asking,” said Hiccup, raising his hands. "Just wanted to know he's all right. He is all right isn't he?”

"Of course he is. He's Hookfang. We just got separated is all."

"How did that happen?"

"None of your business. There was something I had to take care of alright."

"Well, I hope it was more important than patrolling."

“It was."

"Well, good,” said Hiccup. They were silent for a moment.

"Did anyone get hurt?" asked Snotlout, trying to quash the guilt swimming around in his stomach.

"No,” said Hiccup, running a hand through his hair tiredly. "A couple of stalls got knocked over and a stack of hay went up in flames, but we got it under control pretty quickly. No permanent damage.”

That was good at least.

"Look, I know you don't like these patrols. None of us do, but we need to know that you'll be where you say and doing your job."

"I know, I know, all right. I didn’t exactly plan on leaving. Stuff just happened."

"All right then,” said Hiccup. "What happened to your arm?”

"A nadder... while I was doing my job," he said pointedly, his hand on his belt again.

"Make sure you take care of that,” said Hiccup, turning toward Toothless.

"I already did." Or at least Sigyn had.

"Good. I found these." Hiccup pulled Snotlout’s shield and ax off of Toothless. "Thought you might want them back.”

"Thanks," he muttered, taking them.

"Who was in the alleyway with you?" asked Hiccup, his back to him as he fiddled with Toothless’s harness. "I saw an extra set of footprints along with the nadders prints.”

"None of your business,” he said, strapping the shield to his back as he hefted the familiar weight of his ax. Hiccup turned to face him.

"All right, fair enough. Just let me know if you need help with something."

He snorted. Yeah right. Hell would freeze over before he’d ask Hiccup for help. Then he remembered but hell had already frozen over a few times... but only a few.

"I'm fine," he said. Then he remembered the promise he’d made to Sigyn’s father. He needed to ask Hiccup for... No! He was a Jorgensen. Jorgensons didn't ask, they told.

"I'll be busy for an hour or two in the afternoons for the next few days. You’ll have to do without me."

“Al… alright," said Hiccup, taken aback. “We can make do without you I guess. Is there anything else?"

“No. I just want to find Hookfang?"

"I haven’t seen him since earlier today when he was with you,” said Hiccup, mounting Toothless. "Do you want a ride to the academy? I was heading there anyway. Maybe Hookfang is there."

He hesitated, not wanting to accept, but he wanted to find Hookfang quickly. Why hadn't he come back? He was tired. Maybe just this once.

"Sure," he said, coming to climb up behind his cousin.

In no time at all, they were back at the academy. He was relieved to see Hookfang seemingly asleep in his stall.

"Well looks like we found Hookfang," said Hiccup, following him over to examine his dragon. Snotlout hung up his shield, ax, and Hookfang’s saddle before he turned to his dragon.

"Hey, where have you been?" he said, nudging Hookfang’s chin with a boot.

Hookfang rumbled but didn't wake. He bent down to rub a hand over Hookfangs neck. As he suspected, all the heat and water had dried out Hookfangs neck. He’d need to rub some of the extra monstrous nightmare gel on him. There was a spot on his tail he’d been meaning to get anyway. He frowned as he bent to pick something green from between Hookfang’s teeth. Gingerly he lifted it to his nose and sniffed. He'd been afraid of that.

"Well he's not injured,” said Hiccup, reappearing from behind Hookfang. "What have you got there?"

"Dragon nip," he said, flicking it away. The old bat had fed him dragon nip. No wonder he hadn't come back. Even if the nip was not fresh it would have been difficult enough for Hookfang to make it back here to the academy, let alone Sigyn’s. To make matters worse dragon nip had a prolonged effect around the breeding season. Hookfang would be out of it for a few hours yet.

"Who gave him dragon nip?" asked Hiccup, frowning. Snotlout remained silent. "Let me guess, none of my business?"

"Something like that,” said Snotlout, the corner of his lip twitching up.

"One thing's for sure. Hookfang is out of commission for the day.”

“No kidding," he said with a snort.

"Well,” said Hiccup, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “I guess that means you're free for the rest of the day too. Just make sure you're both ready to go tomorrow morning. Let me know when you want to go take care of whatever is none of my business so we can cover for you. Alright?"

“Yeah,” said Snotlout. “Sure.”

With that Hiccup turned and left him with Hookfang. Snotlout snagged the bottle of monstrous nightmare gel from the saddle and set about rubbing down his dragon. His thoughts drifted lazily back to Sigyn, thinking of ways to get her on Hookfang again. One thing was for sure. If it could happen once, it could happen again.